Nigrum Leaena
by lejardine
Summary: Severus falls for a student who means the world to him in more ways then one.
1. Chapter 1

Severus sat at his desk while he watched the seventh years of Ravenclaw and Slytherin do the days lesson. It was a simple potion, at least to Severus, but there was always one screw up. He stood to walk through the class to see the progress. The potion, which half way should have been a deep red, was around pink for some or in the shades of blue which meant the students hadn't gotten very far. He came to the middle row of cauldrons. He happened to hear Magali Bonne sneeze. She stood away from her cauldron, which Severus noticed the liquid inside was the proper shade of red. She was smart though to stand away from her cauldron when she sneezed so as not to contaminate it. Though the effect of the sound could not be stopped beside her Severus saw as Jerold Buckley put three drops of python blood rather than two. He knew he could not stop the potion from bubbling so instead Severus ran to the area and pushed the students out of the way as he jumped and covered Magali from the acidic explosion.

The students were safe but the acidic liquid ate through Severus jacket and shirt and was quickly burning his skin. He was in too much pain to move. Magali jumped to and quickly accioed the appropriate serums. They flew towards her and slowed before her hand so they didn't break. One by one she administered the potions to Severus. It took all of five minutes for her to remove the acid, replenish blood lost and to close the wounds with the appropriate spells. The students watched in awe at how quickly and efficiently she worked.

"Everyone out, except Ms. Bonne." Said Severus. No one hesitated and they all left. With a flick of his wand the cauldrons were all put in stasis and the mess was cleaned. He stood up and stared at Magali who was still kneeling on the ground. "Thank you." He mumbled. Magali stood and fixed her clothing.

"Your welcome sir."

"And where pray tell did you learn how to do that Ms. Bonne?"

"My mother sir." Severus slightly smiled.

"She taught you well." Magali smiled at that.

"Do you need anything else sir?" she stood only a foot from Severus but was nearly as tall as he. She had grown up beautifully. She was tall with long legs and an hourglass shape. But she kept herself looking simple.

"No." he whispered. He stared at her a moment and he could not help himself. He moved closer to her and hugged her. "Really. Thank you Magali." He kissed her lightly on her neck. She didn't flinch much to his surprise. Instead she hugged him back. He moved away a bit and stared in to her eyes. "I've always wondered what goes on in that head of yours." He mumbled.

"I don't think you'd want to know." She said smirking.

"Try me. Legilimens." He dove in to her mind still holding her upright. Severus was met with two doors. One said library the other said gallery. He chose the gallery and was met with medium sized images that showed different events in her life. He looked through and saw baby Magali crawling through the grass trying to catch a grasshopper. Another showed Magali at the age of five levitating toys in her room in front of her muggle stepfather who had turned pale and ran.

Another showed Magali running for her life with fear in her eyes. Her stepfather was pursuing her and she could not use magic on him to defend herself. There was no screaming for help. He could see in her face she knew help wouldn't come. He step father caught up to her, grabbed her, and threw her on the ground and proceeded to beat her raw, strip her, then brutally rape her. Severus stood and stared at that image and felt tears fall from his eyes.

Severus immediately moved to when her mother was killed when she was fourteen. Severus didn't need to look at this memory to remember. Magali had been at Hogwarts when it happened. Minerva told her in her office with Severus standing near by. She stood a moment silent looking away then broke down in to tears. Severus watched as she crumbled to the floor because she could not breath. Magali was given the rest of the day off to mourn. Around dinnertime some of the Gryffindor students took it upon themselves to poke fun at her loss. The Ravenclaws said nothing in her defense but could feel the anger radiating off her. The magical pressure from her anger was so strong that those in her house could not get within five feet of her.

"Your mother was a freak just like you!" jeered one of them. At that Magali stood and turned. And with a look of pure murder sent a wordless spell to the boy in question and shot him so far across the room he flew over Minerva's head. Severus stood quickly and escorted her out of the dining hall as he heard Minerva scream up a storm in the dinning hall. Severus took her outside to the field of grass to allow her to dispel the pent up frustration and energy. She was strong he noted.

Severus went through some other memories before he found one that was a dream of hers. Severus saw himself and decided to investigate. He watched as he watched himself grading papers. Then in strolled Magali in a dark blue dress that hit above her knee and had straps that crossed on her back. She didn't say a word but walked around his desk and placed her hand on his shoulder. Severus watched as his dream self put down his quill and lean back in his chair to allow Magali to sit and they proceeded to kiss. They did nothing else but kiss. He held her close as if afraid to let her go and she did not mind. She caressed his cheek. Severus stood and watched a little longer then pulled out of the dream and out of her mind.

Severus looked down to find her staring at him. Severus had a scared look on his face.

"I warned you." She whispered as she looked away and released him. Severus moved towards her again and kissed her this time on the lips.

"What was that for?" she asked.

"For being honest." She smiled again and left Severus in his lab.

"Goodbye sir."

Magali was the child of Mavis Bonne, Mistress of potions who equaled Severus. Her father was unknown but her mother had remarried when Magali was only two years old. She was tall for her age with long deep red hair and chocolate skin and blue eyes that seemed as if they would glow in the dark. Severus knew her from their school days but they never talked, merely acknowledged one another. He heard that she had given birth to a girl and that the child was bright and strong. On Magali's first day of classes he ran in to her outside by the lake.

"Ms. Bonne I presume." Magali turned her bright blue eyes up to Severus. They were familiar to him.

"Yes sir." She immediately stood.

"Your mother is a potions mistress. I would like a list of potions and a list of spells you already know how to do by tomorrow."

"Yes sir." Severus looked at the child for a second and turned and left. Those eyes would haunt him forever. The next day during his office hours Magali showed and placed a rolled up scroll of the potions and spells she knew prior to attending Hogwarts. She bowed her head slightly and turned and walked out. Severus unrolled the scroll to find she knew as much about potions as that of a seventh year or higher. Her mother truly did teach her well.

Magali was the brightest of her year. She had aced her OWLS and was suspected to ace her NEWTS. Something Severus was not surprised about. She was highly intelligent but unlike students past did not through her intelligence in the face of others. She was quiet and didn't make friends to easily. Her friends were her books and her all black Lapland Owl.

Severus owed his life to Magali. She had saved his life that night of the war. Magali in her first year had requested that Magali be his assistant/apprentice starting her first year at Hogwarts once he saw the potions she was able to do. Both her mother and Dumbledore gave her permission. She was one of the very select few that knew of Severus' intentions. She knew that Voldemort was going to try and kill him so she had everything put together. On the night of the final battle she kept herself holed up in Severus' chambers. After he did not come back at the time he said she got up and ran out of the dungeons and was met by a raging battle. She had spells thrown at her which she deftly deflected as she ran for the entrance to the Shrieking Shack at the roots of the whomping willow. She quickly mad it in and waited for the trio to leave before she showed herself. They left Severus there thinking he was dead. Quickly she forced the bezoars down his throat as well as a blood replenisher and another potions to heal him from the inside out. One the bleeding had stopped and the wounds closed she felt confident that he could be moved magically.

"Line!" she cried out and a small female house elf popped up in front of her.

"Yes mistress?" came the high voice.

"Take Professor Snape to the house. Put him in my room and ward the house so that I am the only one who can get there. Also, make sure to clean him, I've healed him as far as magic can do but keep an eye on him, okay?"

"Yes mistress." The tiny house elf grabbed on to Severus and apparated him to Bonne manor. Magali returned to the battle and aided in the defeat of the Dark lords army. It took another three weeks before Severus was healed. Normally it would have taken longer but her mother gave her a vial of Phoenix tears in her inheritance. In those three weeks Severus had been cleared of his past when it was revealed that he was a double agent on the side of the light and McGonagall had become headmistress, which Severus was glad of. Severus returned to Hogwarts to teach the year after and Magali returned to her studies as well as being his assistant and apprentice.


	2. Chapter 2

Magali did in fact ace her NEWTS and also left as a full Mistress of Potions. After receiving her scores she made her way to Severus' office. He was sitting at his desk grading a paper. He was quiet but she could see the impatience on his face. He was so absorbed in to grading that he didn't notice Magali walk in.

"Professor." She whispered. At her voice he stopped and looked up. He'd grown so used to her that he stopped being on guard when she walked in. It was now four years since the fall of Voldemort and his death eaters; so really, there was no reason for him to be on guard.

"May I help you Magali?" he asked as he put his quill down.

"Nothing really, I just wanted to let you know I aced my NEWTS and that I will be leaving in an hour." Severus sat a moment and took her in. he knew this day was coming but didn't want it to. He'd grown very fond of her over the years. At first it was because of her intelligence. It was nice having someone of like mind around for once. Then when she was in her sixth year it was because she was blossoming in to a beautiful and strong young woman made complete in her seventh. He frequently had dreams of her. Many of them sexual, which would arouse him from his sleep with a raging hard on.

"Congratulations," was all he could muster. But in that one world she heard his sadness. She didn't want to leave him. They had been with each other nearly everyday for seven years. After the death of her mother he, as well as McGonagall, had been the ones to take care of her. Severus stood and put his hand out to shake hers and she took it.

"Severus," he froze. Never had she said his name. "You kissed me before I took my NEWTS. Why the hand shake now?" he did not know how to answer. Instead he stood there a moment then cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. It wasn't a passionate kiss or a violent kiss but rather a gentle and loving one. One that made Magali wrap her arms around his neck to bring him closer to her. In turn he wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her close. They pulled apart and Magali was no longer smiling. Tears streaked her face. "Goodbye." She whispered and she turned and left and went directly to her room to make sure all was packed. She shrunk her trunks and bags and put them all in a backpack. Athena had already been released and knew to fly to Magali's childhood home near Argelès-sur-Mer. She made her way to Minerva McGonagall's office.

"Are you ready?" asked Minerva.

"Yes." She said. Minerva saw the red rim of her eyes and knew why, but said nothing.

"Ms. Bonne it was a pleasure teaching you. I wish you the best."

"Thank you professor." Minerva handed her the Port key, which was a gold necklace with a small oval locket. As soon as she placed it around her neck she was transported to the entry gate to her home. The gate was off a road but was hidden to muggles. She walked through the gate and up the tree-laden walkway to her home. Japanese maples, and cherry trees and Apple trees that blossomed in the spring surrounded it. She walked through her front door and was met by Lina.

"Welcome home mistress."

"Thanks you."

"Would you like me to take your bag for you?" she gave the house elf her bag and went to the library.

"Lina, could you bring me something to eat and drink?"

"Yes mistress." Lina popped out and Magali sat on the sofa and lay there with her arm over her eyes. Lina came back and placed the tray of food and drink on the coffee table and left. Magali ate then took a walk on the grounds to her favorite spot at the end of the grounds. Her home was nestled in the woods at the top of a hill and was only two stories tall. From the end of the garden she could see Château de Valmy and beyond that the sea. On a breezy day you can smell the sea and that always calmed her.

For months Magali immersed herself in work taking breaks only to eat, sleep, and clean. She had shut herself off from the rest of the world so when a loud knock rang through the house as she was on her way down to the lab she nearly jumped out of her skin. She walked to the door and opened it and nearly had a heart attack. There stood her potions professor and master Severus Snape dressed in black pants and a billowing white long sleeved shirt that he had rolled up to his elbows.

"May I come in?" he asked with a smile. Something else she had only seen a handful of times, literally.

"Oh, yes, come in." she stepped aside and followed him in with her eyes. He looked younger and happier for some reason and came with a knapsack. She took his bag and gently placed it on the floor near the stairs.

"Severus, why are you here?"

"Well, I thought I should come visit. I didn't want the last image of you to be of you crying. I missed you and I handed in my resignation." It took her a moment to process what he just said.

"You missed me, okay. But you handed in your resignation? Why?" she was surprised. Severus stood there taller than any other time she'd been around him and he looked relaxed and at ease with himself.

"I wanted a change. And frankly teaching isn't my forte. But most of all because I missed you." He said smiling. His demeanor hand changed completely. He walked over to her and hugged her.

"Who are you and where is Severus?" she whispered as she hugged him back. It was now around nine months since she last saw Severus. Severus picked her up and sat on the sofa with her in his arms still. "You handed in your resignation this late in the school year?"

"No, I did the day after you left. Minerva didn't even put up a fight, but I suspect she knew my reasons." He said as he looked her in the eye. "I've grown so used to seeing you day in and day out that when you left I couldn't handle it. I would be working on a potion and ask you to fetch me an ingredient and there was no sound, no movement." Magali could see the sadness on his face. She sat up and straddled his lap and looked him in the eye. There were no words she could give so instead she kissed him on the lips passionately and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"So what have you been doing for the past nine months?"

"Traveling mainly, getting my tings in order." Magali had a questioning look on her face. "I sold off Spinners End. And packed all of my belongings and stored some and travel with the rest."

"Are you going to find someplace new to stay?"

"Yes."

"Have you thought of a place?"

"Yes."

"Where?"

"Anywhere you are." He answered simply. She was speechless. This man that she'd known for the past seven years of her life wanted to be with her.

"Are you that attached to me?"

"Yes Magali." She placed her head on his shoulder and nestled in to him.

"Hug me." She whispered and he did just that. They sat on the sofa like that for a while. "Well, I guess I should give you a tour of the house then."

"Sounds like a plan then." Severus released Magali and she stood and took his hand. They began with the second floor, which consisted of three bedrooms and bathrooms. The bedroom in the southeast corner of the house was hers and two of the walls were nothing but windows. She showed him his room. She was not comfortable with people sleeping in the same bed as her. Something she didn't know if she would ever get over.

Down to the first floor they went and she showed him the library, kitchen, living room, dinning room, and office, as well as an extra half bathroom. Then down to the basement, which took up almost the entire footprint of the house. At this Severus was struck dumb. Not only was it huge and spacious but it was neat and bright and well ventilated even though it was underground. But what amazed him the most was its modernity. Magali had intermingled muggle chemistry, biology, medicine, and physics with magic. This he knew due to the few articles that were being posted in potions journals. Her potions lab looked like a muggle lab. Against one wall was a large class cabinet that housed many potions ingredients some of which he wished he could find, all in order by name and phylum1. On the opposite wall was another cabinet that was filled with ready potions all properly stored as well as labeled.

"Magali, I'm impressed." He said as he looked at the room. At the far end of the room was a desk of dark wood like that of the flooring through out the house. Come to think of it he realized that the exterior of the house had to be a few hundred years old but the interior was brand new. "Magali, how long has this house been in your family?"

"I would say about four hundred years. Why?" she saw the confusion. "You are confused by the modern look. I had the house completely redone when I left Hogwarts. It was old and creaking and needed a fix. So I changed it to my liking." They left the basement and went outside to the back garden where she had vegetables and herbs and other plants for potions and food. Magali took Severus to her favorite spot and so he could see the scenery. "There is one more place I want to show you." Severus followed her in to the woods along a path that snaked its way down the side of a hill and they came to a clearing. In the middle if the clearing was a henge. It was fully intact and still bore the etchings of the ancients. It was comprised of one large outer ring and a smaller inner ring and one large stone in the middle the size of a king sized bed. "When I really done want to be found this is where I go. But also for it true purpose."

"It's true purpose?" he asked. Magali turned to him.

"Severus, my mother was of the old religion and when she died that was passed on to me." Severus stood there a moment.

"You mean the old religion that Merlin followed, the one of women."

"Yes."

"But if it's something that was passed on to you when your mother died that would mean your mother was a high priestess and so are you."

"Precisely. My mother had a string connection with the elements and this is why. Because of the rites excised here I was conceived."

"What?"

"The high priestess chooses a man to…fornicate with when the rites are being performed. My parents, who loved each other very much and trusted each other, took part in this rite and conceived me." Magali took Severus by the hand and they walked to the center and sat on the large stone alter.

"Do you know your father?"

"Yes, I did."

"You say did, I guess he died."

"Yes, in my second year."

"I didn't hear about this. Who was he?"

"Oh, you did and you knew him well. Did you ever wonder how I got my blue eyes or why you needed to go through both my mother and Dumbledore to get permission to be your apprentice and assistant? Or at least how I got a hold of Phoenix tears?" for a moment Severus drew a blank but then staring in to her eyes and seeing that familiar spark everything fell in to place. The frequent visits away from the school in his last twelve years. The sparkle in her eyes. The iridescent phoenix feathers she kept in her hair. The high intelligence and strong magic.

"You're Albus' daughter." Severus had a look of dread on his face. "Then you know I killed him."

"Everyone does."

"Then why didn't you hate me or try to kill me?"

"Because I knew his condition before you did. I knew that he was going to die and that he asked you to kill him, to perform a mercy killing. Frankly I would have done it myself so he would not be in pain."

"But I was kept in the dark."

"Everyone was, for my safety." The only people in the entire world that knew were my mother, Albus, and myself of course." She was calm with her answers. Then an idea came to her.

"Cináed!" she yelled, and from above a musical cry was heard and the shadow of a bird was circling them. The bird came to rest on the stone next to them.

"How did you get a phoenix?"

"At the funeral Fawkes touched the tomb and there was a burst of smoke and flames and from that came Cináed. Though, no one noticed Cináed. It took a while fore the little chick to come out of the ashes. I saw her hopping around the tomb. She saw me and immediately came towards me and rubbed up against me so I took her here to keep her safe." As she explained the phoenix sat between them. Magali softly stroked the birds wings and as she did so Severus watched in awe. Around her neck there was a locket and a feather made of gold.

"So, the necklace. I've never seen you with it."

"Minerva gave it to me. Upon my graduation it was supposed to be given to me but because Albus died Minerva had to give it to me instead. She turned it in to a portkey for me. You can look in it." She said as she placed the locket in his hand. When he opened it there were two pictures. One o her mother who she looked very much like and one of Albus. Both were smiling at each other. Albus winked at Severus. Severus closed the locket and let it fall to her chest and stood from the stone. "What's wrong?" Severus did not know how to react. He calmly stood next to her, took her hand, and kissed it reverently.

"I want you to know I would do anything for you. I am forever in your debt in more ways then one." He whispered to her.

"Severus." Severus put up his hand to stop her. He stood a moment to gather his thoughts.

"Magali, I love you. You have saved my life more than once, healed me hundreds of times, helped me when I needed it and helped me become human and live my life. I took your father out of this world and you knew and still remained at my side. You remained at my side even through that whole year after his death never faltering. For that, I give you my life." Severus got down on his knees in front of her and kissed her hands again.

"Severus, stand up, please." There were tears falling and she could not stop hers or his. She fell to the ground in front of him wrapping her arms around him. They'd been together for seven years now. They now knew each other's deepest darkest secrets and trusted each other implicitly. "Severus, are you proposing to me?"

"Yes." He whispered. She let go a moment and looked him the eye.

"We've known each other far too long for me to say no." She answered, and then kissed him. Cináed by this point flew away and left the two of them there. "I should let you know though that I am not used to sleeping in bed with another person."

"I think that can be fixed." Severus stood and they took hands and walked the path back up to the house. They climbed the stairs to her bedroom and collapsed on the bed kissing and fell asleep.

1 Phylum: the primary subdivision of a taxonomic kingdom, grouping together all classes of organisms that have the same body plan.


End file.
